Local Marines head to Middle East Reactivation to begin in June, with 7 months expected in Iraq war zone.

March 29, 2006|JOSHUA STOWE Tribune Staff Writer

As her Marine husband prepares for his return to Iraq, Nichole Mansfield juggles a mix of emotions. "I'm just very proud, very lucky, but at the same time, a little nervous," she said Tuesday, the same day officials with South Bend's Engineer Company B announced that the unit's Marines are going back. "Your heart sinks a little bit. I hate to see him go." Her husband, 35-year-old Todd Mansfield, is among about 125 Marines in the local reserve company that will be reactivated for a year starting in mid-June. Marines are expected to spend seven months in Iraq, where the company previously served in 2003. A new mission Last time, the Marines were in support of a combat engineer battalion. This time, they'll be clearing routes used by coalition forces. That means doing everything from patching holes in roads to dismantling barricades and detecting and blowing up mines, 1st Sgt. Robert Rhodes said. In addition, Rhodes said, the Marines may perform a variety of construction tasks as needed, including building schools for Iraqi children or shower and restroom facilities for the U.S. military. "We'll be basically around the clock as needed," Rhodes said. Several dozen additional Marines from other companies will join Engineer Company B, bringing the total number deployed to between 170 and 180, Rhodes said. News of the deployment "wasn't any surprise," said Rhodes, adding that he had been hearing the unit would be reactivated ever since he arrived in South Bend in August 2005. Spending time with family For local Marines, one key to preparing to go is spending quality time with family members. Cpl. Bradley Shively, of Logansport, for instance, is among those who must explain the mission to a young child. At age 31, the divorced father does what he can to describe what is going on to his 7-year-old daughter. "I'm glad to get the opportunity to serve," he said. "(And) I've talked to her. I've been gradually trying to break her in over the last 8 or 9 months. I don't think she grasps what a year really is. "She just says that she understands -- she tells me she understands why I'm going there and she'll pray for me," he said. For Todd Mansfield, who's already been to Iraq, it helps to have a spouse who understands the Marine lifestyle. "She married into the Marine Corps," he said. "She knows from the past that I spend a lot of time gone. She knows what I do and she's very supportive."Staff writer Joshua Stowe: jstowe@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6359